British Forest Policy and Tribal Community in Bengal, 1880-1947

This work is an attempt to trace the history of the British Forest Policy, with particular reference to Bengal. The edifice of colonial forestry was built upon the commercial and imperial needs of the British empire. The authors stresses on the colonial appropriation of forests in the name of conservation. The book highlights the subtle changes that were silently taking place in the second half of the nineteenth century in the forest zones of Bengal with special emphasis on the districts of Bankura, Burdwan, east and west Midnapore and Purulia more specifically known as the "Jungle Mahals". Quite interestingly as the book unfolds that in these permanently settled areas forest legislations came as late as the year 1948, thus exhibiting deviation from all India perspective as well as within Bengal. At the same time it depicts the manner in which the forests were made an unfit homeland for tribals which was a colonial construct to usurp their customary rights over the forests. Thus the sacred forest was torn apart by vulgar commercialism. The tribal worldview of forest was profoundly altered and their protest and struggles gradually shaded off to the mainstream movement.